About a year ago, the then Chancellor and ÖVP chairman Sebastian Kurz, until then the dominant figure in Austrian politics, had to resign because of an advertising scandal.

From chats by his fellow campaigners that had become known, it had emerged that a carousel of surveys that Kurz was supposed to use during his ascent since 2017, the publication of which in a free tabloid and government advertisements there, was kept going with taxpayer money from the Treasury Department budget.

Stephen Lowenstein

Political correspondent based in Vienna.

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The fact that there could be a connection between benevolent reporting and a cornucopia of advertisements has, of course, been an issue for a long time.

There had previously been charges against the former Federal Chancellor and SPÖ chairman Werner Faymann, without comparable investigations and consequences - a topic in itself.

The city of Vienna alone has a higher advertising budget than all other federal states together and the federal government.

In any case, there is a need for regulation and transparency, as was also announced in the government agreement between the ÖVP and the Greens.

This week the "turquoise-green" coalition in Vienna announced and outlined a legislative package.

"Every advertisement, every euro must be traceable," promised the responsible minister, Susanne Raab.

"I want everyone to be able to see at the push of a button which media advertised for what."

Media funding is to be reformed

In principle, there is already an obligation to report, but so far there has been a “minimal limit” of 5,000 euros and other exceptions.

According to estimates, around a third of all advertising from the public sector is "hidden" in this way.

Now, as more money is invested, there are increasing transparency obligations: for campaigns costing more than 150,000 euros, the need for information, the content of the campaign, goals and target groups must be explained.

If the volume is more than 750,000 euros, the results of an impact analysis must be communicated.

The provision that the publications in the media transparency database are deleted after two years is to be omitted.

Media funding is also to be reformed.

The National Council had already decided in March that it should be increased to 20 million euros and that it should be more closely based on criteria such as the number of journalists employed under collective agreements, of correspondents or of journalistic training.

Now there is also talk of “content diversity promotion”.

Criteria such as reporting on regional events or the EU and international issues are mentioned.

Reasons for exclusion are agitation or a threat to democracy, said Green Party leader Sigrid Maurer.

How such criteria are objectified can only be seen from the actual text of the law.

The subsidy was introduced in the 1970s, then called press subsidy.

It was officially considered compensation for the VAT on newspapers, but it was also perceived as a ploy by then Chancellor Bruno Kreisky (SPÖ) to dampen criticism of the introduction of party funding.

This was also indicated by the parity at the time: there were 150 million schillings each for the press and parties.

Today, even after increasing media funding to 20 million euros, party funding from the federal government alone has doubled.

At the same time, Media Minister Raab announced a decision on the future of the "Wiener Zeitung".

The oldest surviving daily newspaper in the world (founded in 1703 as the "Wiennerisches Diarium") has belonged to the Austrian state for more than a century and a half and was subject to its changing fate.

However, its editorial team has enjoyed a certain degree of independence, not least because it has had its own source of income up to now: the "Wiener Zeitung" is the official gazette in which companies have to publish their mandatory publications, which brings in around 20 million euros a year.

This business basis is to be eliminated at the end of this year, since the mandatory publications will be switched to a digital platform.

Raab has now announced that the focus of reporting will be on the online sector.

"Depending on the financial resources" should continue to appear a print product, about ten issues a year.

In addition - and this is probably the main purpose - there is talk of expanding it into a training and further education institute.

Raab referred to "detailed discussions" with the newspaper and with experts.

The employees should remain employed "in the new business model".

Nevertheless, it cannot be assumed that the editorial team is enthusiastic about being converted into something like a state-owned journalistic cadre school.